Radio Free Europe/ Radio Liberty’s Bulgarian and Romanian services to close
The Bulgarian and Romanian services of Radio Free Europe/ Radio Liberty – Svobodna Evropa and Europa Liberă România – will close on March 31 2026, RFE/RL said in a message on X on February 25.
RFE/RL President & CEO Steve Capus said: “This decision has not been taken lightly and is primarily driven by ongoing budgetary challenges.
“We are proud of the unflinching, balanced journalism produced by Svobodna Evropa and Europa Liberă România since their return to Bulgaria and Romania in 2019 and are grateful to these teams for their dedication to their audiences – and RFE/RL – over the last seven years,” Capus said.
The team in Sofia is looking for an option that would allow the continuation of work and service to the audience, said a source from the editorial office, who requested anonymity, according to a report by Eurocom.
In Romania, the director of the local service, Elena Vijulie Tănase, described the news as “bad not only for colleagues”, confirming the final date for the bureau’s closure.
The cuts are part of a broader policy under the Trump presidency.
In spring 2025, Trump ordered sweeping cuts to Voice of America and other media outlets, affecting a number of international programmes.
Although the outlet initially welcomed the court victory against Trump and the attempts to gain judicial control over White House decisions, financial pressures forced the final shutdown.
In November, Trump cut funding to Radio Free Europe in Hungary and closed it at the request of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. At the time, the US administration indicated that the radio station’s activities did not align with the country’s national interests.
(Photo: pexels)
